<% content_for :marginNavigation do %>
    <%= render :partial => "exhausting_the_alternatives_navigation" %>
<% end %>

<div class="box">
    <h1>Exhausting the alternatives</h1>

    <h3>
        Can Muhammad be the author of the Quran?
    </h3>

    <p>
        It is a strange thing, a tragedy, that the author a great work disclaims it.
        Never did <%=render:partial=>"ourpurpose/prophet"%> claim that he was the author of the Quran.
        The Quran happens to be a masterpiece in the works of Arabic. So why would a
        person disclaim a work that is a masterpiece?
    </p>

    <h4>The Trustworthy</h4>

    <p>
        We know from history that from his youth till the day he claimed prophethood
        at the age of 40 years, history never reports a single lie from him.
        In fact he was given the title <strong>Al-Alim (The trustworthy)</strong> from friends and foes alike.
        Even after he claims prohethood his enemies used to entrust his valuables with him
        for safety. Abu Sufyan (an enemy at the time) went to Abisinya, when the king was
        interrogating him about <%=render:partial=>"ourpurpose/prophet"%> he asked; at any instance did
        the <%=render:partial=>"ourpurpose/prophet"%> tell a lie? Abu Sufyan said 'no' because that was
        the truth, at any instance he could have said yes.
    </p>

    <h4>Illiterate</h4>

    <p>
        <%=render:partial=>"ourpurpose/prophet"%> was illiterate. He was a
        man who had no formal education in any science, language, religious or secular.
    </p>

    <p>
        The Quran speaks about a variety of subjects of science like:
        Astronomy, Embryology, Hydrology, Geology, Sociology, Psychology,
        Oceanography, Law etc. See
        <%= link_to 'What Scientists say about the Quran', :controller => 'the_quran', :action => 'what_scientists_say' %>
    </p>

    <p>
        Allah says in the Quran:
    </p>

    <p class="quote">
        Those who follow the messenger,
        the Prophet who can neither read nor write,
        whom they will find described in the Torah and the Gospel (which are) with them...
        <%= render :partial => "ourpurpose/quran", :locals => { :surat => 7, :ayat => 157} %>
    </p>

    <p class="quote">
        In like manner We have revealed unto thee the Scripture,
        and those unto whom We gave the Scripture aforetime will believe therein;
        and of these (also) there are some who believe therein. And none deny Our
        revelations save the disbelievers. (47) And thou (O Muhammad) wast not a
        reader of any scripture before it, nor didst thou write it with thy right
        hand, for then might those have doubted, who follow falsehood. (48)
        <%= render :partial => "ourpurpose/quran", :locals => { :surat => 29, :ayat_to => 48, :ayat_from => 47 } %>
    </p>

    <h4>Arabic style</h4>
    <p>
        The Quran was revealed over a period of 22 and a half years. It would have
        been impossible for anyone to retain the exact same style of Arabic in
        the Quran over such a long period of time, regardless of ever-changing
        personal circumstances. Human authors tend to gradually change their writing
        style and also their views and thoughts. Yet the style of the Quran remains
        consistent from beginning to end.
    </p>

    <p class="bottom">
        The personal sayings of <%=render:partial=>"ourpurpose/prophet"%>
        are meticulously recorded in books of hadith. If we examine the Arabic
        style of the hadith and compare it to the style of the Quran, we can see they are
        clearly distinguishable.
    </p>

</div>